The Tesla Cybertruck is proof that futuristic looks are sometimes best left in sci-fi movies since they may not be practical in real-life situations. We'd like to be able to finally give the electric pickup a break, but the list of Cybertruck design fails just keeps on growing.
The latest issue has been brought to light by the arrival of winter in the northern hemisphere. The Cybertruck was only released last November and the roll out was slow, so for many owners this is the first time their vehicle has encountered snow.
headlights gone (not OC) from r/CrappyDesign
We've seen complaints about the Cybertruck's unsual lights before because the brake lights occupy a small part of the tail light. But the latest issue that's been brought up on social media is the placement of the headlights. Inexplicably, they're set back in a gutter instead of being flush with the car's body, and that gutter can accumulate mud, sand and, yes, snow.
While the daytime running light is relatively easy to keep snow free, the headlights have a deep shelf in front of them that allows snow to build up and cover the lights. And it seems that's not just an issue when the car is stationary. Some people have reported having to stop on the road to clean the lights.
And that's not the only problem the design of the lights is causing in snow. Over on the Cybertruck Owners' Club forum, several people have reported finding it extremely difficult to see the road when it's snowing because the running lights illuminate falling snowflakes, making them brighter than the road.
Over on Reddit, some people are saying they now understand why the vehicle isn't considered roadworthy in some countries. Others are less surprised. "You're telling me this thing is poorly designed?! Well colour me shocked. SHOCKED," one person wrote.
"Tesla's whole schtick is that they pretend to innovate by ignoring a century of optimization of design and use by the automobile industry," one person wrote. And I'm starting to think that there's a good point there.
While there's definitely a place for rule breaking in design, rules that enhance road safety probably aren't the ones to break. Tesla comes up with some interesting innovations, but it also needs to recognise that sometimes everyone else does things in a certain way for a good reason. It appears Tesla really did design the Cybertruck thinking of Mars and not a northern winter.
Over a year after launch, the Cybertruck remains the most divisive car design we've seen for a long time. Some people love poking fun at it – like when everyone was laughing at Tesla's photographs of a Cybertruck parking lot. Other people are so in love with it that they'll buy Tesla's miniature flying Cybertruck.
